The CharlieHR Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about CharlieHR in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
CharlieHR
The Insider’s Guide
HR software for UK small businesses, priced by team-size bracket
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among HR software, read from CharlieHR’s own pages.
Made by Charlie OS Limited · checked Oct 18, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from CharlieHR’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on CharlieHR’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 18, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
2.4
GPA, above 5 of the 9 other HR software we grade
CharlieHR, sold as Charlie, is HR software made for UK small businesses. Every plan includes employee records and documents, onboarding, time-off tracking, performance reviews, engagement surveys and staff perks, and the price is a monthly fee set by headcount bracket. Charlie Recruit, an applicant tracker, and Charlie Grow, which adds a dedicated HR adviser and the AskCharlie AI, cost extra.
To get you started, here are 9 things to know about CharlieHR, taken from its own pages and our grades.
New hires fill in their own details, but you'll still set up leave types and review cycles.
- 1
Best for a UK small business's first HR system
Charlie is HR software for UK small businesses, with records, onboarding, time off, reviews, surveys and perks on every plan, priced by headcount.
- 2
Paid plans start at about $27.76 a month
As its pricing page puts it: £21 per month for up to 4 team members (pounds, excluding VAT).
- 3
You can try it first
7-day free trial, no credit card required (add-ons not included)
- 4
It runs on Web
Web.
- 5
Employee records and documents
Stores contracts, policies, tax codes and other records on each profile, sends contracts for e-signature and files them once signed.
- 6
Onboarding
New hires submit their own details through a self-service onboarding flow, with checklists to track tasks and contracts sent for e-signature.
- 7
Time-off management
Leave requests go to the right manager, public holidays sync to the calendar, custom leave types fit company policy, and Slack shows who is off.
- 8
A 2.4 GPA, above 5 of 9
That is against the other HR software we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 9
Keep it
The plain part of CharlieHR you could make: employee records, time off, applicant tracking and surveys. What surrounds it you could not. The 2 things listed below take a company, not a weekend.
CharlieHR at a glance
- Pricing
- Free trial, from £21 per month for up to 4 team members (pounds, excluding VAT)
- Free plan
- No
- Free trial
- 7-day free trial, no credit card required (add-ons not included)
- Runs on
- Web
- Made by
- Charlie OS Limited, since 2016
- Category
- HR Software
- Our grade
- 2.4 GPA, fair
The report card
Best for a UK small business's first HR system
Charlie is HR software for UK small businesses, with records, onboarding, time off, reviews, surveys and perks on every plan, priced by headcount. A ten-person team pays £47 a month. But it runs in a browser only, it doesn't do payroll, and the trial lasts just 7 days.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C | Ten people fall in the 5 to 14 bracket at £47 a month, in pounds before VAT. That buys records, onboarding, time off, reviews, surveys and perks. It sits between this category's cheaper quarter and its middle, and HR advice with Charlie Grow starts at £200 a month on top. |
| Free plan and trial | C | No free plan, but a 7-day trial with no card. A week is short, and the add-ons aren't in it. |
| Features | B | Records and documents with e-signatures, self-service onboarding, time off with Slack showing who's out, scheduled reviews, engagement surveys and perks. The whole job for a small team, with payroll left to Xero or PayCaptain. |
| Ease of use | C | No App Store rating on record. New hires fill in their own details, but you'll still set up leave types and review cycles. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | Web only, linked to Xero, PayCaptain, Workable, Teamtailor, Spendesk, Hofy, Ravio and Pave. No phone or desktop app on record. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who CharlieHR is for
- Great if this is your first proper HR system
- Handy when you want HR advice alongside the software, through Charlie Grow
- Good for teams that like new hires filling in their own details
Who it is not for
- Not for you if staff expect a phone app, as it runs in a browser
- Pricey if you add recruiting and HR advice, from £55 and £200 a month
- Skip it if you're outside the UK, as it's priced and built for UK businesses
Good to know
Good for
- UK small businesses hiring their first HR system
- Founders who want HR advice alongside the software
- Teams that want a fixed monthly price for their size bracket
Worth knowing
- Made for UK businesses: prices are in pounds and exclude 20% UK VAT, and no other countries are named.
- Charlie Recruit costs £55 to £150 a month extra and cannot be bought on its own; Charlie Grow starts at £200 a month for up to 4 people.
- It does not run payroll; it stores payroll details and links to tools such as Xero and PayCaptain.
- No app-store app is listed on its site; Charlie is used in a browser.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
~$27.76
A month to start
CharlieHR is a paid product with a free trial, starting at £21 per month for up to 4 team members (pounds, excluding VAT).
That buys records, onboarding, time off, reviews, surveys and perks.
1-4 team members
£21
per month for up to 4 team members
Core Charlie: records and documents, onboarding, time off, performance reviews, engagement surveys and perks.
5-14 team members
£47
per month for up to 14 team members
Core Charlie for teams of 5 to 14; the page lists 5-9 and 10-14 as separate brackets at the same price.
15-29 team members
£108
per month for up to 29 team members
Core Charlie for teams of 15 to 29.
30-49 team members
£185
per month for up to 49 team members
Core Charlie for teams of 30 to 49.
50-99 team members
£323
per month for up to 99 team members
Core Charlie for teams of 50 to 99.
100+ team members
£431
per month for up to 149 team members
Core Charlie for 100 to 149 people; then £539 for 150-199, £646 for 200-249 and £754 a month for 250 or more.
Trying it first
7-day free trial, no credit card required (add-ons not included)
Read from charliehr.com on Oct 18, 2026.
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
1
Place it runs: Web
HR software for UK small businesses, priced by team-size bracket. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: surveys, applicant tracking, employee records, time off.
The whole job for a small team, with payroll left to Xero or PayCaptain.
- Employee records and documents
- Stores contracts, policies, tax codes and other records on each profile, sends contracts for e-signature and files them once signed.
- Onboarding
- New hires submit their own details through a self-service onboarding flow, with checklists to track tasks and contracts sent for e-signature.
- Time-off management
- Leave requests go to the right manager, public holidays sync to the calendar, custom leave types fit company policy, and Slack shows who is off.
- Performance reviews and engagement
- Run structured reviews and appraisals on a schedule, and send engagement surveys to the team.
- Charlie Recruit
- An add-on applicant tracker with interview scheduling, e-signed contracts, best-fit analysis, blind hiring and a custom careers site.
- Charlie Grow
- An add-on with a dedicated HR adviser, the AskCharlie AI assistant, urgent support and help with compliance and policies.
Where it runs
- Web
What it works with
- Xero
- PayCaptain
- Workable
- Teamtailor
- Spendesk
- Hofy
- Ravio
- Pave
CharlieHR is made by Charlie OS Limited, and has been around since 2016.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
5/9
Other HR software it is graded above
CharlieHR's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 5 of the 9 other HR software we grade, and level with 3.
It stands best on features (B, above 1 of 9) and worst on ease of use (C, above 0).
Its paid plans start at about $27.76 a month, against a middle price of $9 for the category: 5 of the 6 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 1 tool scores higher and costs less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 10 HR software we grade, cut by the letter each got. CharlieHR’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 1 of 9
- CFree plan and trialAbove 5 of 9
- BFeaturesAbove 1 of 9
- CEase of useAbove 0 of 9
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 0 of 9
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 7 HR software. Further left costs less; higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. CharlieHR is the marked dot.
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
The plain part of CharlieHR you could make: employee records, time off, applicant tracking and surveys. What surrounds it you could not. The 2 things listed below take a company, not a weekend.
It costs $333.15 a year.
What you could make
- Employee records, time off, applicant tracking and surveys: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- It plugs into other products, Xero, PayCaptain and Workable among them.
- The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job.
What this rests on. CharlieHR’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
Breathe, Humaans, Personio, BambooHR and Zoho People
The 5 tools CharlieHR is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 2.6GPA
Breathe
Free trial · from £24/mo
UK HR software for small firms, priced per business, not per person.
- Only Breathe lists iOS and Android apps.
- CharlieHR also covers surveys.
- Breathe also covers reports, expense tracking, shift scheduling and time clock.
- 2.0GPA
Humaans
Paid
HR system of record for growing companies, with AI agents, by quote.
- CharlieHR also covers surveys and applicant tracking.
- Humaans also covers workflow automation, AI agents and reports.
- 1.8GPA
Personio
Paid
European HR platform for records, absences, time and recruiting.
- Only Personio lists iOS and Android apps.
- CharlieHR also covers surveys.
- Personio also covers time tracking.
- 2.4GPA
BambooHR
Free trial · from $250/mo
HR records, hiring, time off and reviews, with US payroll as an add-on.
- Only BambooHR lists iOS and Android apps.
- CharlieHR also covers surveys.
- BambooHR also covers reports and payroll.
- 2.4GPA
Zoho People
Free plan · from $3/mo
Low-cost HR records, attendance, shifts and reviews from Zoho.
- Zoho People has a free plan. CharlieHR does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Zoho People lists iOS and Android apps.
- CharlieHR also covers surveys and applicant tracking.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
12
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is CharlieHR free?
No, CharlieHR is a paid product, but you can try it first. 7-day free trial, no credit card required (add-ons not included).
How much does CharlieHR cost?
CharlieHR lists 6 plans. 1-4 team members: £21 per month for up to 4 team members.
What platforms does CharlieHR work on?
CharlieHR is available on Web.
Does CharlieHR have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 18, 2026. CharlieHR is listed for Web.
Does CharlieHR have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 18, 2026. CharlieHR is listed for Web.
Is CharlieHR open source?
CharlieHR is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 18, 2026.
What does CharlieHR integrate with?
CharlieHR's listing names Xero, PayCaptain, Workable, Teamtailor, Spendesk, Hofy, Ravio and Pave.
Who makes CharlieHR?
CharlieHR is made by Charlie OS Limited. It dates from 2016.
What are the alternatives to CharlieHR?
The closest alternatives to CharlieHR in our directory are Breathe, Humaans, Personio, BambooHR and Zoho People.
How does CharlieHR compare with other HR software?
CharlieHR's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 5 of the 9 other HR software we grade, and level with 3.
Is CharlieHR good value for money?
ToolGPA grades CharlieHR C for value for money. Its paid plans start at about $27.76 a month, against a middle price of $9 for the category: 5 of the 6 others that charge start lower.
Could I make my own version of CharlieHR?
The plain part of CharlieHR you could make: employee records, time off, applicant tracking and surveys.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from CharlieHR’s own pages on Oct 18, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 18, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Charlie's own pages on 18 October 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Charlie OS Limited. Prices change, so check charliehr.com before you buy.
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
2,068
Tools graded, in 57 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
ToolGPA is free to read. It may earn a commission from affiliate links and it works with sponsors, but anything paid for is labelled and no one can pay for a grade. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
2,068
tools graded
57
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- CharlieHR, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/charliehr
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "CharlieHR: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 18, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/charliehr
Know someone choosing between HR software?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/charliehr/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded HR software after CharlieHR, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- HR Software Insider's GuideEvery one of the 10 HR software we grade, compared
- Breathe Insider's GuideUK HR software for small firms, priced per business, not per person2.6 GPA
- BambooHR Insider's GuideHR records, hiring, time off and reviews, with US payroll as an add-on2.4 GPA
- Sesame HR Insider's GuideModular HR from Spain built around clock-ins, time off and shifts2.4 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what CharlieHR’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. ToolGPA uses affiliate links and may earn a commission from them, and it works with sponsors; anything paid for is labelled, and no one can pay for a grade. CharlieHR is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Charlie OS Limited. Prices and plans change: check charliehr.com before you buy.